Location: Bristow, Haymarket, and Brentsville, Virginia, USA
Visited: April 2013
The following is my LiveJournal entry from this day, because it covers everything I want to say and I am far too lazy to think up new words, much less type them all in:
Knowing it was the last chance I'd have for some
snarfage before Europe, I took advantage of the gorgeous weather to explore some of Prince William County. It's kind of stupid that I haven't done more snarfing here, since it's far closer to my house than Loudoun County or, in fact, most of Fairfax County. I started near Haymarket, stopping at
Beverley Mill. It's a ruin now, just four walls and no roof, but it's reinforced and has rows of benches inside. I suppose that means they must hold events there, but there's no lighting or stage area so I'm not sure what that would be. Anyway, I eventually pulled myself out of the rather relaxing area inside the mill and relocated at a nearby picnic table so I could sketch.
It's my first attempt at urban (well, rural) sketching, and it didn't come out quite as nicely as I'd hoped, but hey, it's a learning experience. I'm used to drawing things much smaller and closer, like pottery or photographs, so this was a nice challenge. I probably should have spent more time on it, but as usual, I rushed through because my attention span is far too short to worry about rendering all that stonework accurately. I almost didn't even draw the tree.
Afterward I headed into Haymarket proper, and noticed that the road to my next snarf was blocked off with flashing blue lights and a bunch of tents. It turned out I'd stumbled upon
Haymarket's Earth Day festival. I enjoyed chatting with the goats, donkeys, and turkey. They also had chicks and bunnies and ducklings. As I browsed the stalls among the crowds, I was mistaken for a mother twice. The second time was most entertaining, as the woman at the table asked me if the children could have snacks. I was confused, said, "What children?" as the family near me began walking away, and the woman realized her mistake. I said, "They're not my children, so...yes!" I guess I must look matronly.
My next stop was Brentsville, and when I arrived at the
historic centre I saw another group of tents - pup tents, housing Civil War re-enactors. I got a photograph of some of the guys, figuring that would work as a representative shot of the Brentsville Historic District.
My final stop of the day was Bristoe Station Battlefield. It was a nice walk, though by that point the sun was at such an angle as to make my sunglasses not so useful anymore. Either way, by the time I got home I was pleasantly exhausted.
